The use of roof trusses manufactured in a truss plant and shipped to a building site for installation in a structure is commonplace. Because some trusses are too large for transport over public streets and highways, truss manufacturers add hinged connections within the truss so that the truss can be collapsed to a smaller (typically shorter) size for shipping. To assemble such a truss, the truss manufacturer positions truss members and nailing plates for proper engagement with one another. Integral teeth on the nailing plates, including some nailing plates having a hinge, are pressed into the truss members by a press, such as conventionally used for the driving of nailing plates to form the truss. Examples of hinged connectors used in collapsible truss manufacture are shown in co-assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,553,961 and 6,401,422, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. The manufacturers then collapse the truss structure at the hinged joints for transport to the building site.
There is a substantial demand for trusses that are of larger and more complex shapes as well as trusses that must carry load across larger spans, such as attic frame roof trusses. These trusses can require larger pieces of wood and place larger loads on any connection including hinged connections.